On January 26, 2024, a delegation led by China's Vice Minister Sun Weidong arrived in Pyongyang, the capital of the DPRK, for consultations with Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of the DPRK Pak Myung Ho and met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the DPRK, Choe Son Hui. The two sides had in-depth exchanges on Sino-DPRK relations and the international and regional situation. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the DPRK and the Year of China-DPRK friendship.
Recently, the situation on the peninsula has continued to be tense, and the contradictions between the DPRK and the ROK have been intensifying. After taking office, South Korea's Yoon Suk-yeol strengthened its military alliance with the United States, allowing the United States to deploy strategic nuclear submarines in South Korea and holding joint military exercises with the United States and Japan, posing a serious security threat to North Korea. In order to defend itself, North Korea has repeatedly test-fired intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), demonstrating its nuclear deterrence capability to the outside world. The United States and South Korea strongly condemned this and demanded that North Korea give up its nuclear weapons or face tougher sanctions. The two sides did not back down militarily, which led to a stalemate in the situation on the peninsula.
In this case, the DPRK sought the support of Russia. DPRK Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui recently visited Moscow and met with Russian Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and the two sides said they would strengthen cooperation on some sensitive issues. This is seen as a possible military aid to North Korea by Russia. Russia is also under pressure from the United States, which supports anti-Russian forces over Ukraine in an attempt to weaken Russia's influence. Russia may use the peninsula issue to divert the attention of the United States and plunge the United States into the quagmire of war.
However, the resolution of the Korean Peninsula issue depends not only on the will of the United States, Russia and the DPRK, but also on the participation and coordination of the Chinese side. As an important neighbor of the Korean Peninsula, China has always been committed to promoting the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and peaceful dialogue, and opposes unilateral or military actions by any party that undermine peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula. The purpose of the Chinese delegation's current visit to the DPRK is to convey China's position to the DPRK, promote Sino-DPRK friendship and cooperation, and maintain peace and stability on the peninsula.
At the same time, China's first minister, Wang Yi, also held talks with US affairs assistant Jake Sullivan in Bangkok, Thailand, and the two sides had frank communication on Sino-US relations and some important issues. The Chinese side stressed the importance of the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiques, and demanded that the US stop arms sales to Taiwan and interfere in Taiwan affairs, otherwise it will seriously damage Sino-US relations and peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. In addition, the two sides also discussed the DPRK issue, and the Chinese side expressed its willingness to work with the US side to promote the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and peaceful dialogue, so as to achieve long-term peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula. It can be seen that China and the United States still have differences on some issues, but there is also some room for cooperation, and neither side is willing to completely break with the other side because of these problems, which also shows that both sides have the will to maintain regional peace and stability.
It is worth mentioning that at a time when China, the DPRK and the United States are actively engaged in diplomatic activities, South Korea feels the "cold" of China. According to reports, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tei-yeol has communicated with foreign ministers such as the United States and Japan since he took office on January 10, but has not yet spoken with his Chinese counterpart. South Korean media believe that this shows that China is actively carrying out diplomatic activities, but it does not take South Korea seriously, reflecting the coldness of Sino-South Korean relations. The reason is that South Korea has shown an unfriendly attitude toward China on some issues. For example, South Korea has made inappropriate remarks on the Taiwan Strait issue, which is of concern to China, interfering in China's internal affairs, and arousing strong opposition from China. In addition, South Korea has called for a boycott of the Chinese ambassador to South Korea. All this makes the Chinese side feel dissatisfied and disrespectful to the ROK. Therefore, if South Korea wants to improve China-South Korea relations, it should respect China's core interests and refrain from doing things that harm China's interests.